The ability of personnel to quickly mount or dismount a vehicle involves several factors that are generally dependent on both the configuration of the vehicle, and the agility of the person that is mounting or dismounting the vehicle. In the particular case wherein the vehicle is a military truck, the primary configuration factor is the vertical distance that must be negotiated by personnel to mount or dismount the truck. For instance, a 7-ton military truck, with its tailgate down, presents a vertical drop from the bed of the truck to the ground that can be as much a five feet, or more. Couple this with the fact that in a military situation, where speed of movement is critical, the agility of personnel in a mount/dismount procedure will be impeded by the fact they may be required to carry in excess of fifty pounds of equipment. Stated succinctly, combat-loaded military personnel can experience great difficulty in mounting or dismounting a vehicle, such as a 7-ton truck, unless they are somehow provided the proper support to do so.
As is well known, and clearly obvious, a person's agility is severely tested whenever they attempt to negotiate a vertical distance that is greater than about three or four feet. In this context, consider that the vertical distance presented by a typical step in a staircase is only about six inches. Further, staircases typically include a banister for support. On the other hand, whenever much greater vertical distances need to be directly negotiated, other types of structural support may be necessary. For example, in a firehouse where firemen must quickly and safely descend from a second floor to a ground floor in a matter of only a few seconds, staircases are considered inadequate and cumbersome. Instead, poles are used. For military operations, where trucks are used to variously haul personnel, or cargo, or both personnel and cargo, it is necessary to provide a structural support system that will assist personnel to quickly mount/dismount the vehicle, when needed. At the same time, it is important to maintain the versatility of the vehicle for its other missions.
In light of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mount/dismount system for use on a vehicle (e.g. a truck) that can be quickly and easily installed on the vehicle, as well as quickly and easily removed therefrom. Another object of the present invention is to provide a mount/dismount system for a vehicle which allows combat-loaded personnel to quickly and safely mount/dismount the vehicle. Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a mount/dismount system for a vehicle that is easy to use, simple to install, and comparatively cost effective.